Thirsty Turtle Eatery, Pub Opens in Florham Park

Florham Park's newest family-style restaurant Thirsty Turtle had its grand opening on Tuesday night, where it welcomed guests for dinner in the former Trader Joe's location at Regency Plaza.

Located at the corner of Columbia Turnpike and James Street, restaurant owner Jim Finnegan said that opening night went "very well" with more than 160 customers who were the first to try the restaurant and pub.

Thirsty Turtle is operated under Growth Restaurants, which also owns The Famished Frog in Morristown, Bamboo Grille in Basking Ridge and Meadow Wood Manor in Randolph.

With each restaurant designed with its own unique style, the menu at Thirsty Turtle is comprised of what Finnegan calls the "best of Growth," including some of the most popular food items from the company's other locations across Morris and Somerset counties.

The menu—which contains a variety of pizza, burgers, sandwiches, salads, entrees and appetizers—also contains about a quarter of its items from the original Thirsty Turtle that was located in Bernardsville.

Finnegan said the biggest seller on opening night was the pretzel burger, which is an 8-ounce premium Angus burger served on a toasted soft pretzel roll, topped with American cheese, bacon, Russian dressing and shredded lettuce. This item is also sold at The Famished Frog.

Other popular choices on Tuesday night, Finnegan said, were the blackened chicken salad—comprised of mixed greens, homemade corn salsa, fresh avocado, dressed in herb vinaigrette and topped with tortilla strips—and the margarita flatbread on the pizza menu—which contains hand-diced tomato, fresh basil, extra virgin olive oil, Asiago, mozzarella and fontina cheeses on an ultra thin flat bread.

As the restaurant starts off and fills its staff, it will be open Tuesday through Sunday for dinner until about mid-September. Finnegan anticipates that in about a month the restaurant will be open seven days a week for both lunch and dinner.

Finnegan said the owners were attracted to the restaurant's location because of Florham Park's family-oriented and "unique" community.

"It's a great family town, which is why we really set the place up to be both friendly for families to just come in and have dinner or to come watch a ball game in the pub area," he said.

The restaurant is located at 186 Columbia Turnpike in the same mini mall with 10 other retail chains including Trendz Salon & Spa, LA Boxing and Bank of America.